Self-locking wire staple



L. A. BROWN SELF-LOCKING WIRE STAPLE Nov. 7, 1950 Filed Oct. 25, 1948 v INVENTOR.

U lffiNA/PD ARDA'LLC fi/rolwy ATTORNEY.

Patented Nov. 7, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 1 Claim.

This invention relates to a fence wire staple and has for its principal object the provision of a staple for attaching fence wires to wooden posts which will retain itself in place regardless of the usual drying, splitting or shrinking of the post. The usual fence post staple forms round holes in the post which, when the post dries, shrinks or cracks, enlarge so that the staples occasionally drop from place and at best are easily pulled from place.

The principal object of this invention is to provide a staple which will automatically lock itself in place in the post and retain its position therein, regardless of shrinking or cracking of the post.

Other objects and advantages reside in-the detail construction of the invention, which is designed for simplicity, economy, and efficiency. These will become more apparent from the following description.

In the following detailed description of the invention, reference is had to the accompanying drawing which forms a part hereof. Like numerals refer to like parts in all views of the drawing and throughout the description.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 illustrates the improved staples as they would appear in place in a fence post;

Fig. 2 is a front view of the improved staple;

Fig. 3 is a side view therein;

Fig. 4 is an end view looking toward the sharpened extremity of the improved staple;

Fig. 5 is a diagonal side view of the staple in the direction of 5 in Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is an enlarged top view of the improved staple as it would appear when driven into a fence post; and

Fig. 7 is a similarly enlarged cross-section, taken on the line I1, Fig. 6.

In Fig. 1 a typical wooden fence post is indicated at I I] with the wires to be attached thereto at H.

The improved staple comprises a length of wire bent in a U-shape to form a U-shaped staple having two parallel legs I2 and 13. The extremities of the legs l2 and I3 are sharpened on inwardly extending angles to form two beveled portions M which extend upwardly and outwardly to form projecting barbs I5 which are separated from the legs by barb notches [6.

It is customary to drive fence post staples on an angle of approximately 45 from the vertical as shown in Fig. l. The reason for this is that it places each leg of the staple in a separate grain of the wood so as not to split the post and to provide greater holding power.

Th6 barbs l5 are formed on the legs of the staple on an angle of 45 from the plane of the staple as indicated in Fig. 4. Therefore, when the staple is driven into the post on the usual 45 angle the barbs will extend horizontally outward so as to be positioned transversely of the grain of the wood.

This causes them to bite into the wood should any attempt be made to remove the staple so that the latter is held securely in place regardless of shrinking or cracking on the grain line of the post.

Although, it is preferred to drive the improved staple on an incline of 45 it will still exert greater holding power than the usual staple if driven vertically or horizontally since the barbs project beyond the sides of the legs as shown in Fig. 4.

While a specific form of the improvement has been described and illustrated herein, it is to be understood that the same may be varied, within the scope of the appended claim, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed and desired secured by Letters Patent is: A staple formed of stiii wire and having transversely spaced parallel legs and a bridge connecting said legs, the free ends of said legs being formed with barbs projecting laterally from said legs in an outward direction and disposed in a plane at substantially an angle of l5 to the plane I of the legs, said barbs each having a flat shoulder at its upper end and a flat outer face extending downwardly from the outer end of the shoulder and terminating at the inner side of the leg, said barbs having flat side faces extending downwardly from opposite side edges of its shoulder and extending the full thickness of the leg in inwardly converging relation to each other and intersecting at the inner side of the leg, the side faces also converging downwardly and intersecting at the lower end of the leg, and the outer surfaces of said barbs being tapered downwardly and sloping inwardly of the legs with their lower ends intersecting the lower ends of the side faces and thereby forming sharp points for the lower ends of the legs.

LEONARD ARDELLE BROWN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,206,425 Feasey Nov. 28, 1916 1,311,903 Leschander Aug. 5, 1919 

